Iran (formerly known as Persia) is a country in Southeast Asia. The term derives from Aryan, a reference to the ancient inhabitants of the land. In 1935 the government of the country asked the states with which it had diplomatic ties to use Iran instead of Persia in their official communications. All embassies were also given a directive by the ministry of foreign affairs to refer to the country as Iran.

Henceforward, Iran was the term used in all official documents and news reports. Iran has for long been considered as the cradle of one of the richest and most ancient civilizations in the world, one that has continued to thrive throughout the several thousand years of its existence. The numerous manifestations of this flourishing Iranian culture and civilization are scattered throughout a vast geographical area which is bound on the east by the Pamirs plateau and eastern parts of Afghanistan, on the west and northwest by the Caucasus and the Black Sea, on the north and northwest by Amu Darya and Khwarazm, and on the south by the lands laying beyond the littoral of the Persian Gulf, the Sea of Oman, the Red Sea, and the Indian Ocean.

The influence exerted by this culture and civilization, which has continued to derive its underpinnings from belief in monotheism, together with the widespread presence of the influential and powerful culture and worldview of the Islamic Iran are among the elements which left deep imprints on the culture and sciences of many nations in the past, and whose impact continues to be felt up to this very day.